I selected 10 systems that Ive practiced and found to be self-defense worthy.

Its hard to say just one art does it all. The best advice is to try them all and get in combat shape. Ultimately, its not the art thats important; its the individual. Its not the technique that makes the difference; its the delivery. A smooth stone that hits its mark is going to be more effective than a .44 Magnum bullet that misses. Train with purpose; the more you sweat in the gym, the less you bleed on the street.

Arnis
This Philippine art contains the most street-lethal knife skills available.

Kyokushin Karate
If you complete the 100 fights required for a black belt in kyokushin karate, you possess the attributes required for self-defense.

Kobudo
A street-savvy warrior will take a weapon over his empty hands every time. When you become an expert with traditional weapons, you have an advantage in real combat.

Krav Maga
The gun and knife defenses taught in krav maga are perhaps the best in the field.

Muay Thai
Muay Thais a realistic combat art with an emphasis on training and conditioning.

Kano Jiu-Jitsu
The forerunner of judo, this early 20th-century art developed by Jigoro Kano was more streetwise than ringwise.

Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
Its been proved effective in street combat in the toughest cities in the world.

Extreme Self-Protection
It was designed by Mark Hatmaker to cover all ranges of combat.

Dirty Boxing

While many fights end on the ground, almost all fights start standing up. Dirty boxing, aka clinch boxing or trap boxing, prepares you for strikes that work in stand-up grappling and moves that are illegal in the boxing ring.

Jeet Kune Do Unlimited

Created by Burt Richardson, its perhaps the most combat-efficient interpretation of Bruce Lees method of scientific street fighting. Kickboxing

Firstly, and this is true for all these entries, if youre on the street and a stranger attempts to mug you, or worse, he most likely doesnt know any particular fighting style, other than swing for the fences and keep moving forward. There are quite a few offshoots of kickboxing, the most famous of which is Muay Thai, which roughly translates to art of the eight limbs. Kickboxing for self-defense concentrates on its version of punches, knees, and kicks: fastpaced, distracting, and aimed at all available openings. If the attacker has a knife or gun, and is within arms reach, he will use the weapon. The defender is thus armed with more weapons, hands, feet, knees, elbows, head. Simply walk toward the attacker (who has any weapon but a gun), and throw a front kick straight up against his chin as hard as possible. Kickboxing thrives on this sort of move, and teaches the practitioner to execute it with such extreme speed, faster than the attacker can react, that it virtually rules out the risk of fancy kicks. Do it correctly and it will almost always break his jaw, crush his larynx, shatter his teeth, force him to bite off his tongue, etc. He will not fight after this. This sort of kick is well trained to the point that it can, in fact, be delivered efficiently, that is, quickly and powerfully, without being telegraphed. Alternatively, step to the side, grab the attackers weapon arm, and sling your forehead into the his nose. This will not hurt you nearly as much as you think. The attackers nose, on the other hand, will shatter like a firecracker.

Well trained kickboxers practice something called combat qi,which is the physical conditioning of any part of the body through repeated damage, until it no longer sends sufficient pain signals to the brain to bother the person. Kickboxers will roll a baseball bat handle up and down the shin firmly enough to cause aching, for about an hour a day for 2 years. The tibia is repeatedly damaged and rebuilds itself stronger and thicker. Eventually, the kickboxer can kick the baseball bat in half with his or her shin, and not feel pain. 9 Karate

Here, special emphasis is placed on attack deflection. Most punches or knife lunges are performed straight toward you, not in an arc. Few fighters are stupid enough to try a looping haymaker. Thus, step to the side, creating a lateral line toward the attackers arm, strike the attackers punch or knife hand, then quickly strike his lower side, belly, or back with your other fist. This is very difficult to defend against, and most likely he will not be able to. Push forward and throw a knee into his quadriceps. This hurts like crazy. Strikes to the face and head are important, but the attacker will expect them, so instead, block his right-handed attack with your left fist (or vice versa), and punch with your other hand straight into the soft spot below his sternum as hard as possible, twisting the hips. This target is the solar plexus, and will incapacitate him as effectively as a strike to the groin. Or, if he charges forward, snap a front kick straight up with the ball of the foot planted as hard as possible into his stomach or solar plexus, not the groin. If one of the former targets is struck, the attacker will be forced back in agony, by means of his center of gravity. He is leaning forward while charging, and a kick to his groin will cause him to lunge into you. 8

Aikido

An interesting art that is immediately recognizable. It does have a few striking moves in it, but for the most part, it is based on the principle that when an attacker strikes, he leaves some part of his defense vulnerable. If you, the defender, do not attack him, you remain defensively invulnerable. Do not resist his attack. Use its momentum against him. Steven Seagal is the most famous Aikido practitioner in the Western world. He may be a horrible actor, but he is a genuine 7th degree black belt in Aikido, and his signature move is absolutely essential to any self-defense arsenal: the kote gaeshi, or forearm return. The attacker steps forward and throws a straight punch. You sidestep, snatch hold of his wrist, and twist around in time with his punch. Do it right, and it will fling him completely off balance, using his own momentum, while you whirl around, and twist his wrist toward the outside. He probably will not flip over like the classic theatrics in a Seagal film, but his wrist may well break. Hes unlikely to fight anymore after that. Most critics of this art point out that it is nearly impossible for the average black belt to catch a persons punch and turn fast enough to perform this move, but thats not true. Its actually a very easy move to learn and perfect. Aikido thrives on joint locks, which do not require much speed to perform, compared to the kote gaeshi, and are extremely effective in immobilizing and incapacitating an attacker. 7 Wing Chun

Wing Chun Kung Fu is the art that Yip Man taught to Bruce Lee, and which Lee rebelled against as too slow and formal for self-defense. Thats quite misleading. He meant that it was insufficient for him when fighting against professional martial art experts, like Wong Jack Man, with whom he fought a famous duel. Lee invented his own version of Wing Chun, which became entry #5, because of the inadequacies he noticed in Wing Chun. With this method, he defeated Wong in 3 minutes, when almost any other fighter in the world would have needed a lot more time, and would have suffered much more injury. He won by delivering Wing Chuns signature punches: they do not use the hips, but are instead, very fast, rapid-fire left, right punches to the attackers chest, not the belly, not the throat, but the sternum or solar plexus. You block the opponents attack with one hand and respond with the other fist straight into his chest, following with the other fist, again and again, walking into the attacker as you punch. The forward motion of your whole body adds power, which, coupled with the arm strength of the average 100 pound woman, results in about 300 pounds of force rammed repeatedly into the attackers chest. The only thing left is to practice your speed in doing this. 15 punches before the attacker can react are not unheard of. These punches also have the advantage of keeping the elbows close to the sides, preventing the attacker from grabbing the punching arm. Then theres the centerline defense versus looping attacks, like a haymaker or roundhouse kick. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so instead of picking up extra power by swinging around and twisting the hips, you block the attackers strike and simultaneously throw a front kick straight forward into his belly. This will take almost anyone off his feet the first time, if you kick as hard as possible.

The closer range of this method favors a shorter person, like a woman defending herself against a would-be rapist, etc. The closer the two people are, the easier it is for the shorter person to invade the reach of the larger person, effectively penetrating his defense. 6 Jiu-Jitsu

This is the most universal style on this list. It is a true hybrid, incorporating elements of grappling, hard striking, eye gouging, choke holds, biting, joint locks, as well as the awareness of the defenders center of gravity versus the attackers center of gravity. You throw your attacker by lowering your center of gravity under his, and jerking him over you, or around you. Its simple and effective. If he attacks with a weapon, you trap this arm, then deliver a knife-hand strike to his collarbone, while shoving him backward and down, locking the weapon wrist and breaking it. If he throws either a front or roundhouse kick of any kind, he must stand on the other leg. You sidestep his kick, trap the leg, and deliver your own kick into his standing knee, breaking it backward, then whipping him around by his raised leg. He will go down and will be unlikely to be capable of much retaliation. If he charges forward and grabs your shirt, you do not move backward. You move forward and bend down, ram your hip into his midsection, grab one of his shoulders with one hand, and with the other grab him around his back, and whip him over your own shoulder, shoving upward with both legs. A 100 pound woman can do this very easily to a 250 pound man. You can then trap one of his arms and lock one of its joints while he is down. 5 Jeet Kune Do

Bruce Lee envisioned a style without style, which seems nonsensical. But try to understand the concept of adaptation. Lee emphasized this above all: the worst thing you can do is to anticipate the outcome of a fight. You ought not to be thinking of anything but his attack and your response. Clear all other thoughts from your head, or they will slow you down. Thus, you use one stance, the western fencing en garde stance. Remain bouncing on the toes in order to switch from left forward to right forward foot, to retreat or to advance, to be able to kick with either leg. Footwork is all-important in a real fight, as it determines how far you are from the attacker. Elements of Wing Chun include close-quarters trapping of hands and feet; no kicks higher than the waist, since kicking higher than this leaves the groin and standing leg vulnerable; and simultaneous attack/defense (see #1). Elements of Jiu-jitsu include body throws and strike deflection. Emphasis is placed on the speed of strike combinations, and well trained practitioners can strike the attackers throat up to 10 times in one second. 4 Western Boxing

Youve heard stories of would-be muggers picking the wrong old man to mug. The fight typically ends with one swing. Thats all a boxer needs. In fact, boxers have been imprisoned (wrongfully, in my opinion) for defending themselves from muggers, murderers, bank robbers, etc., on the grounds that their hands are lethal weapons. Boxers throw punches faster, harder and more accurately than any other trained fighter on the planet. This is because boxers train on average for 4 years to do just that: punch properly. They are not allowed to kick, so their hands are all they have. Consider that Rocky Marciano knocked out Rex Layne with an off-balance, out-of-reach right hand, covered with a 16-ounce leather glove. This punch knocked Laynes mouthpiece 10 feet across the ring, out of clenched jaws, and sheared off four of his teeth at the gumline. Boxers also toughen their bodies religiously, every day, to strengthen their muscles for endurance and durability. They dont look as hulkingly large as bodybuilders, but their muscles are as powerful and hard as a farmers. They punch, block, bob and weave going forward, and punch, block, bob and weave going backward. They are drilled relentlessly with the maxim, Always protect yourself. The hands stay on both sides of the head, the posture crouched so that the whole body is ready for explosive power, and that the front of the torso is protected by the forearms. Your target is the side of the chin, which will wrench the attackers head sideways and shut off his brain by pinching the spinal cord in the neck. His strength and rage do not matter. He will black out instantaneously. 3 Brazilian Jiu-jitsu

This hybrid mixes Jiu-jitsus standing throws and strikes with ground fighting, which emphasizes joint manipulation and overall control of the opponent, effectively ending a fight very quickly. The larger the attacker, the more easily he can be grappled off his feet, using his center of gravity against him, and forcing him to submit (or pass out). Once on the ground, the first thing Brazilian jiu-jitsu teaches is to seize a limb and break it at a joint: kneebars for snapping knees or ankles, armbars for snapping elbows and wrists, chokeholds and the use of the powerful legs to immobilize the attackers torso while the defender ends the fight with fists or elbows to the face. 2 Keysi Fighting Method

Youll see it in Chris Nolans Batman films. It was developed by Justo Dieguez and Andy Norman, based on Dieguezs street fighting experiences in Spain. Batmans method of fighting is understood from the comic books to require the utmost efficiency, because Batman is a genius at fighting crime, and will not waste time or effort in putting criminals away. Ten or twenty bad guys at a time routinely attack him, and Dieguez and Norman have developed

the style to defend against this many people. It sounds impossible, but after 6 or 7 years of training in it, which is not too terribly long, anyone can perform all the necessary moves. You become a self-defense machine. Nolan looked around for a style of fighting never depicted on screen, something fast-paced, close-quarters, but quick, dirty and brutal. Classical Tae Kwon Do is beautiful to watch, but terribly inefficient in terms of the street fight, in which there are no rules. The Keysi Method has almost no kicks of any kind. It thrives on extreme close-quarters combat using every weapon the body can quickly wield in such a small space: fists, head, knees, and especially the elbows. There is only one stance to know, and when you see it one time, you can do it: the thinking man, with the hands clasped on the head, and the elbows raised to protect the head, neck and upper chest. It looks like a man holding his head while deep in thought. It is designed to strike with the sharp elbows, and lots of hammer fists, which are MUCH more powerful and devastating than straight punches, because they employ the entire upper body in bringing the firm, outside muscle, from the root of the little finger to the wrist, down like a hammer against the target. This is a hybrid style, using elements of grappling from Jiu-jitsu and Aikido, ground fighting from Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, close strikes and centerline defense from Wing Chun, and trapping from Jeet Kune Do. The Keysi Method teaches its practitioners to defend themselves against any number of attackers, 5, 10, 20 and even more, with a 360 degree range of aggression, and to observe all objects in the vicinity for their potential as weapons. 1 Krav Maga

It is Israels national martial art, developed largely by Imi Lichtenfeld, and dedicated to noholds-barred incapacitation for the purpose of street survival. No quarter is expected or given. It incorporates Western boxing punches, Karate kicks and knees, Greco-Roman wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu ground fighting, Jiu-jitsu throws and grappling, and most importantly,

bursting, adapted from Wing Chun. This is a simultaneous defense/attack: instead of blocking an attack and then delivering a response, you block the attack and deliver a response at the same time, i. e., block with the left arm and push forward with the legs, striking with the right fist to the throat, all simultaneously. Also stressed are attacks to vulnerable body parts: the eyes, throat, and groin. Attackers can expect testicular ruptures. Emphasis is also placed on disarming attackers with both knives and handguns, and turning these weapons on the attacker. It also exclusively trains hand-eye coordination, until defense becomes second nature and does not require thought. And a good Krav Maga instructor can teach all of this to anyone, regardless of athletic prowess, in only 3 to 6 months. bonus Firearms

Its something of a joke, and out of regard for the popular definition of martial arts, firearms were left off the list. They are, however, by far the most efficient method of selfdefense. Bruce Lee carried a .357 magnum everywhere once he became famous as the guy no one could beat in a fight, because there are always stupid jerks who want to prove that wrong. He had no intention of risking injury. Chuck Norris is well known as a pro-gun advocate, and in response to a reporters ironic question, If someone broke into your house, would you use your roundhouse kick? he replied, No, Id use my 10 gauge. The ranking of most of the entries on this list does not account for the length of time it takes to master the given art. Krav Maga is #1 largely because it can be learned proficiently in only 3 to 6 months. But then, you can learn how to shoot the chest and head of a man-size silhouette target from 50 yards (46m) in one afternoon. And most street violence occurs within arms reach. No caliber smaller than the .380 (or .38 revolver) is recommended. This list is in no particular order. I could have put krav maga, haganah and others in there, but when I got to 10, I stopped. This list will piss off many instructors, but they have to

realize, for example, that with a system like kyokushinkai, which came from goju-ryu and has many descendants like asahara, enshin, yoshukai and zendokai, they were not left out. Krav maga, for example, has nothing that the Okinawan, Japanese and kickboxing systems do not. If I were to include all of them, the list would go into the hundreds.

Kyokushinkai Karate
It has a great history of physical toughness and conditioning, as well as an arsenal of leg kicks, sweeps and knee strikes from the outside and from the pocket. Most K-1 champions come from this style. Its weak on ground maneuvers, though.

Outlaw Tai Chi

It has an effective composition of quick strikes (cutting and tissue-ripping moves) to vital areas like the eyes, ears, face, neck and groin. The emphasis in training is on pure nonclassical maneuvers, as is seen in most other Chinese systems. However, this style is weak on structure and ground maneuvers.

Bando
Although strictly a weapons-based style, it lends itself to highly effective defensive techniques (without weapons) from old-school monk tactics largely developed years ago in Southeast Asia along trade routes. It contains bleeding techniques, head striking, low-level flange kicks, drop kicks and farewell kicks not taught in other kickboxing styles.

Kajukenbo
Its a hybrid system that uses the best parts of other styles, from upright maneuvers to grappling. It was designed strictly for self-defense, instead of adhering to traditional rituals or sporting competition. Its weaknesses are a lack of movements to control the horizontal relationship with assailantslike all stylesand always using the hands as the primary means of defense.

Chinese Kenpo
It has a curriculum that encompasses all areas of self-defense. Practitioners learn a range of attacking angles, realistic scenarios and methods for defending from any position with any weapon. The main weakness is a lack of emphasis on ground maneuvers, along with limited kicking and knee striking.

Okinawa-Te
The original system had a complete arsenal of weapon and non-weapon skills. It had the perfect blend of old-school, pain-tolerance training with scientific skills that utilized the least amount of effort and time to produce the maximum amount of damage. Its weaknesses are the amount of time it takes to learn all the long animal forms (there are 36, with one having up to 500 moves) and a lack of balanced ground maneuvers.

Judo
Although it was created along the lines of a non-jutsu activity, which means it was designed mainly for exercise and sport, the best bouncers Ive ever worked with were judo black belts. Because judoka spend most of their time doing tug-of-war-type drills with partners on the mat, theyre very successful in reality combat, even with their limited striking ability.

Aikijutsu
Its tactics for off-balancing an opponent before leveraging himas opposed to jujutsu, which is more concerned with straight leverageis a good system to bridge the gap between the sport/exercise aspects of the old-school (read: hard-core) jutsu forms and the free-flowing sport forms we see on TV. Beware of the consumer atmosphere found in some schools today and the lack of effective striking skills when practicing self-defense drills.

Kickboxing
This style can offer the very best of realistic, upright striking skills, hands down. If you learn the old muay boran knees, the head butt, the bleeding and cutting techniques, and the oldschool takedowns, this system cannot be beat. Its weakness is a lack of attention to selfdefense as opposed to sport. The conditioning drills taught at most authentic schools make up for any need to practice purely self-defense scenarios.

Boxing
Few martial arts teach these two defensive skills: Use the head to protect the head and the body to protect the body. Instead, they use weapon-fighting tacticsusing the hands to protect the head or the body. For self-defense from the pocket, it would be hard to defend against a good boxer. Of course, his lack of elbow strikes, groin attacks and ground defense is limiting, but for pain tolerance and conditioning, it cant be beat. Self Defense and Striking Styles, Karate - First off, it's hard to characterize karate into one single unit, as there are so many styles. That said, we are going to go with generalizations here. First, the karate styles, similar to the kicking based striking styles, tend to focus on footwork or the ability to move into range, incapacitate an opponent quickly, and then move out of harm's way. Obviously, in self defense situations this is important, as we want to inflict damage while avoiding reciprocation. Further, the karate based styles also teach powerful strikes that are necessary in order to incapacitate. In addition, they tend to be diverse or more even-minded in their striking efforts. In other words, punches, inside fighting (or clinch work), and kicks are all looked at as at least somewhat important. So practitioners may not be as good with their kicks as let's say in Taekwondo, but are better with a wider repertoire of strikes. Of course, the fact that most fights go to the ground is not a strength of this style. In other words, the karate based martial arts types are highly limited in their takedown defense instruction and grappling, so practitioners need to keep some level of distance in an altercation.

On the flip side, since karate is a striking style that focuses on incapacitating strikes, it can be used against multiple attackers with a level of confidence. Also, street combat can often mean the use of weapons or dealing with them. The karate based styles do tend to teach practitioners how to both use weapons and defend against them. Finally, the sheer amount of karate styles make it hard to talk about the generalities of instruction. For example, some schools may do full contact, which arguably readies a practitioner more for street combat, than let's say a school that does this more infrequently. Kyokushin karate, for example, is a full contact art. And as will be said multiple times throughout this article, the instructor makes just as much of a difference as the style in terms of self defense applicability. Self Defense and Striking Styles, Kicking Based (Taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, etc.) - In self defense, one wants to move in and out of harm's way quickly, incapacitating an opponent along the way. This is especially true when up against more than one opponent. One also wants to inflict damage and not be hurt; taking chances isn't always a good thing. Some of the Korean striking styles like Taekwondo and Tang Soo Do, both of which are kick heavy, teach practitioners to do just these things. Further, they teach very powerful strikes designed to incapacitate. Beyond the kicks, which let's face it are stronger than punches, are strikes that hit vital organs with the hands. weapons That said, if we believe the old adage that most fights end up on the ground, than the kicking based styles have a significant weakness. Further, the kicking styles are great from a distance, but in close, though they certainly teach the use of punches, etc., they do not tend to focus on this type of striking as much as karate or especially Muay Thai, for example, where inside clinch work is key. So the strength in self defense via the kicking styles is in having distance to fight- sometimes the scenario won't allow for such- and being able to keep good distance. I have also come to realize that the kicking styles are not like Krav Maga, for example, which teaches how to survive in the street from day one. In other words, in order to be able to use such instruction in the street, one must be very, very good. But when one is, the kicking styles are difficult to deal with because they are so athletic, powerful, and uncustomary. In addition, since the kicking styles primarily involve standing up with an opponent, they are more applicable in a self defense situation against multiple attackers than let's say a grappling based art. You do not want to go to the ground when faced with multiple opponents. They also teach the both the use of weapons as well as defense against them. And finally, yes, Tang Soo Do usually uses their hands a bit more than Taekwondo does, but that's not what this article is about. And remember, the teacher, as much as if not more than the style, is key. Self Defense and Striking Styles, Kung Fu - In martial arts circles, kung fu refers to a ton of Chinese martial arts substyles. Thus, it is very difficult to generalize about. That said, we'll give it a whirl.

First, kung fu is primarily about striking. Thus, the majority of styles within this realm teach incapacitating strikes to vital areas. This is a good thing in a self defense situations, as speed is key. What's more, kung fu does teach a lot about distance control and moving in and out of harm's way effectively, which limits the damage that can be done to YOU, the practitioner. Striking tends to be diverse; lots of kicks and punches, including unorthodox ones. In terms of grappling, most of the kung fu substyles tend to be meager in their teachings. And considering that ground fighting is important in self defense, this is a noteable flaw. Further, kung fu stylists have had significant difficulty in major sporting events like MMA. This has left many wondering about its effectiveness in self defense. That said, there are A LOT of practitioners out there that sing kung fu's praises. Further, high level practitioners are difficult to deal with in part because their striking is somewhat unorthodox. And like every other style noted in this article, the choice of instructor is just as important, if not more than the style. Self Defense and Striking Styles, Muay Thai - Muay Thai is known to be a very effective art in all circles. It has proven itself quite well in competitions like mixed martial arts and kickboxing. It teaches diversity in striking, in that kicks, punches, elbows, knees, kicks and more are taught very, very well. The clinch, or inside fighting on the feet is focused on to a great extent. So when someone comes in and tries to turn a self defense situation into a grappling match, which let's face it happens very frequently, Muay Thai has an answer, at least before the fight hits the ground. That said, Muay Thai is not a grappling art, per se. And since the majority of fights end up on the ground, this is a weakness. Muay Thai has morphed into a sport for the most part. This is good in that practitioners are constantly going full go against one another, albeit with gloves, so a self defense situation that involves practitioners going against one another in full combat won't be surprising. Then again, when something is sports oriented with gloves, it doesn't perhaps focus enough on avoiding damage, or at least not as much as karate where every strike that lands is frowned upon. Also, weapons based work, which is applicable in self defense situations, is not focused on as a result of the sports concentration in this art. Finally, since Muay Thai focuses on striking it can be at least somewhat effective against multiple attackers. But dealing with such situations is not practiced to the same extent as it is in the karate world. Again, as is the case with all styles, the instructor makes all the difference in the world. And certain things may be focused on more depending on the teacher. Self Defense Styles and Krav Maga - Self defense situations tend to happen very quickly and without much warning. This is Krav Maga's specialty, in that they literally practice surprise situations all the time. This Israeli martial arts style is wholly concerned with self defense and dealing with high pressure situations. From day one, practitioners are immersed in self defense, not forms, not line work, but rather self defense. Further, today's practitioners work both on groundwork and striking, though striking is still most concentrated on (perhaps because many believe that self defense is best done on the feet).

That said, it's not unheard of for Krav Maga schools to bring in people with a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu background, in that they are an evolving art. Simply put, Krav Maga practitioners tend to practice against weapons to a great extent, prefer incapacitating strikes to vital organs, and look toward simplicity in movement. What about weaknesses in regard to self defense? Well, there's not a lot. That said, groundwork, though improving within the art, is still a relative area of weakness. Further, given their focus on simplicity and self defense, higher level techniques (side kicks, things that are unusual) are not very focused on. So they may have trouble surprising a high level practitioner in the street. Self Defense and Throwing Styles (Aikido , Judo, Hapkido) - The throwing styles are characterized by takedowns. In the three major ones- aikido, hapkido, judo- the movement from a clinch of some sort to taking a person down is concentrated on. Thus, when it comes to in close fighting, all have advantages. Further, if thrown to the ground, throwing style practitioners are experts at falling. Thus, they are good at avoiding injuries as a result. Once on the ground, or sometimes while still standing, all of these styles practice joint locks and choke holds to varying extents. Thus, practitioners are capable of fighting where the majority of self defense situations go. All of these styles work on stopping opponents with weapons. And in some cases, this is a real strength. Along with this, however, none of these are striking based. Thus, the throwing stylists can find themselves at a disadvantage prior to clinching with their opponent. These styles are also not necessarily great at dealing with multiple opponents. Of course, putting aikido, judo, and hapkido in the same category of self defense isn't really fair. Aikido works a lot on wrist locks and would be good against weapons. That said, it is soft on ground submissions and may be the weakest against striking of all the throwing styles. Judo as a whole can be the strongest with ground submissions, depending on the teacher and style of judo. Hapkido is an evolving art. With the advent of Combat Hapkido and lots of subsets, the style can be heavy into submissions and self defense, or much lighter in these arenas, depending. And as much if not more than the other styles noted in this self defense piece, the teacher matters. Style by itself is never enough to tell you how good a school is in terms of teaching self defense. Self Defense Styles and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu - The reality is that the closest thing to a one on one self defense situation we have out there in terms of competition is contemporary mixed martial arts (MMA). Speaking of MMA, back when it first started in 1993, Royce Gracie, the son of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu's founder Helio Gracie, dominated every competitor. Yep, back when stylists were pure, when there wasn't a lot of cross training going on, a 170 pound Gracie took people down, put them in joint locks or choke holds, and generally defeated everyone- catch wrestlers, karate fighters, taekwondo competitors, Tang Soo Do stylists, and even boxers. He proved the old adage that most fights end up in grappling encounters, and being able to survive under such circumstances was paramount. In the end, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu does not teach a fighter how to be a good stand up fighter. It does, however, teach people to avoid being hurt on their feet, take others to the ground, and

then apply a submission. Further, through the use of leverage, it also teaches practitioners to take on bigger opponents and fight from their back via the use of the guard position. From a self defense perspective, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has proven very, very strong in one on one fights. That said, there are self defense situations where combatants will not want to go to the ground, such as when facing the possibility of multiple attackers. Putting yourself purposefully on the ground under such circumstances isn't very appropriate, which is a weakness. Beyond that, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu can be somewhat slow moving towards a submission, which could be viewed as a weakness depending on the situation. Though the style can be very effective versus weapons, as the art it emanated from, Japanese Jujutsu is great under such circumstances, this is usually not an intense focus of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. In the end, as usual, the instructor makes a world of difference. Self Defense and Japanese Jujutsu - Most fights land on the ground. Guess what, Japanese Jujutsu teaches how to deal with that through the use of submissions, which include joint locks and choke holds. Weapons sometimes need to be dealt with in self defense situations. Japanese jujutsu practitioners are often very good at disarming would be attackers wielding such things. Further, they are also adept at dealing with those trying to take them down, and have a repertoire of takedowns as well. Japanese Jujutsu practitioners do practice a level of striking to vital organs as well as defense on their feet. That said, their striking skills are not on the level of a karate practitioners, for example, so that could be viewed as somewhat of a weakness. Along with this, Japanese Jujutsu is not necessarily great against multiple attackers, as it is primarily a close contact art. Again, the instructor makes as much of a difference as the style does. Choose carefully.

thoughts: -upgrade standard taser to "Blast Knuckles" or flashlight stun gun -make sure any sword purchased is battle ready and not replica -rather than purchasing a sword, consider purchasing a couple machete instead -- any survival kit should have and they're cheaper without worrying whether they'd hold up in a home defense situation; and you'll likely be used to carrying and swinging them if you use them regularly as a tool while camping, etc. -instead of sword/machete, a one handed battle axe/tomahawk/lightweight hatchet might be a suitable replacement -consider bear strength pepper spray over standard *any of two of above can be wielded in combination

two handed weapons -halberd or poleaxe is a good defensive weapon in hallways and suitable for fighting in large rooms -but it's size has limitations, even if you reduce the size of the handle down to 4 or 5 or 6 feet -high-velocity hunting slingshot -crossbow *a flashlight can be mounted on both crossbow and slingshot, and one or the other should be included in most survival kits as well other options worthy of consideration: -steel baton -throwing knives -incapacitating noise devices w/ or w/o a stobe light function -- make certain you have ear protection -baseball bat, preferably little league sized for easier use As with any home defense, it's important to identify before attacking -- the last thing you want to do is bring harm to your family!

katana and similar sized swords are too long for in-house fighting. As buckeye mentioned, a machete or gladius sized sword (the gladius is the sword the romans used). Wakisashi or tanto A short, stout blunt object, like a steel baton or wooden bat, is another option. Not that someone who gets stabbed is going to instinctively fight back, but the business end of a good baton will put stars in someone's eyes for a moment, hopefully enough for a second swing. Repeat as necessary. In all cases, however - "no gun" is a home defense scenario I wouldn't want to be in, outside of a Home Alone movie.

What about an axe or a hatchet? Almost everyone has either one of those (or both), and they are pretty effective. Hatchet is even usable in smaller spaces and if you don't get a "clear" hit, the momentum will still give quite a blow.
Can of mace and a baseball bat and perhaps an attack dog.

am very comfortable using katanas and other swords and the belief many have about the amount of force/length of swing required to yield deadly force is a bit exaggerated. A sword can be used with little more then the flick of a wrist

It's always been less about firearms and more about a prepared mind that's ready to act when the moment of deadly danger comes into being.

Firearms, edged weapons, impact weapons, chemical-based (OC) weapons, tazers/stun guns, and improvised weapons - it really does not matter. Transfer the necessary energy into your target via the most efficient means available at the time within the confines of the proper use of force and/or rules of engagement. I also want to add that it is tremendously important to study the human body and the effects produced by the variety of weapons you might use against vital points as well. You might be surprised at the amount of damage the body can take before it hits the wall of mobility impairment, hypovolemic shock, unconsciousness, and/or incapacitation.

With all that said, my choice outside the use of a gun for home defense would be an edged weapon in a commonly available size, if readily available and accessed when in crisis. Check out the FBI stats on the dangers posed by edged weapons. They are common, popular, and effective tools. You just might be facing a violent criminal actor with an edged weapon if your home is invaded as well. With a modicum of regular training with an edged weapon, you would be putting another serious survival skill set in your defensive tool box if you are mentally primed to engage in close quarter confrontation. Plus, are you more likely carry a pocket folder around the house or your firearm anyways. Edged weapons tend to be everywhere. As the saying goes...If it's not in your hands or on your belt - it's not in the fight.

I believe the best home defense weapon is an attack trained dog. A dog is a huge deterrent to anyone wanting to commit a crime on my property. I am in the process of training my new German Shepherd and hoping to get her through to a Schutzhund 3 title. Using a bladed weapon is just not realistic for me personally and having a trained dog means I don't have to be on guard since (hopefully) the dog is. For a woman, this makes the most sense in home protection. I still have a loaded Glock close by though!

5 acres within 45 minute drive from Chattanooga Tn. (where my day job is) i will be providing my own food by gardening and rabbits and chickens and goats and aquaculturing catfish. cheapest piece of crap house i can find with the most land i can afford

Sorry folks, but laughed my ass off at the thought of me taking on a home invader with a samurai sword! I really think that is a bad idea on many levels unless you've had training in close quarters sword fighting (LOL) with wives, kids, dogs, gnomes or what ever running around in a panic while you try to take on the bad guys. Same with crossbows BTW. Not a good option as you will have to draw back string and load, find target, aim, shoot, and pray to god you got it right. I keep a 6 D cell MagLite (skull splitter) by my bed (w/glock) and wife has police grade OC-baton (w/S&W .38 crimson trace grips). Other than the maglite and OC, I have a fish club in the garage and an expandable baton (ASP) in the den. For ease of use, I'd encourage ASP and/or maglight, though both require close contact with enemy.

The martial arts are among the best and most natural physical exercises you can do. Theyre healthy, fun, and they teach self defense. I believe that pretty much every man and woman should be competent in martial arts and combat. If youre looking for a martial arts style, the most important thing is to find one thats right for you and what your goals are. For example, some martial arts styles are heavily focused on tradition and philosophy. Some of these may be labeled soft styles. Whether hard or soft, some of them dont practice regular full contact free sparring. This may be ideal for some, but if youre looking to get a great workout and learn how to really fight, theyre probably not your best bet.
The Key is Full Contact Sparring

I dont care how many punches you throw, or how many bricks you can break, or how beautiful your kata is; if you havent been in several open fights, how can you know how effective your technique is? Does a soldier become effective through the classroom, or the battlefield? Im sure any soldier would say that you dont really learn until youre in the trenches. As far as Im concerned, the same is true for hand to hand combat, or grappling. You learn how to fight when you start fighting. Doing choreographed responses to attacks can prepare you in certain ways, but youve got actually use them in random and free-flow trials. (Ok, if you learn eye-ripping or ball-hitting in your style, Ill grant that you dont get a good chance to practice this and I dont want to fight you in a dark alley. But you know what I mean.)

For example, when I was training in a combination of karate, kickboxing, submission grappling, and MMA, our progression went something like this: 1. Learn the philosophy and basics of the style. 2. Join the community and enjoy meeting new people. 3. Get solid cardio and strength workouts in high-intensity classes. 4. Start learning the basic katas. 5. Buy protective sparring gear, and start doing simple drills with a responsible partner in a safe environment to get accustomed to punching and being punched, but without any uncertainty yet. 6. Learn grappling moves and locks when your partner lets you do them to him/her. 7. Do some point-based sparring. With sparring, it means opponents try to land a hit on each other, and when they do, the fight is reset and they start over. It builds speed and technique. This is where some martial arts styles or schools stop. 8. Finally, do real fighting. Two people, protective gear, and go! Try to land punches, kicks, and not just individual ones. Land combos of several heavy hits in a row, knock your opponent down, get drenched in sweat, get the wind knocked out of you, and learn how to really fight. Same with free grappling; two people try to submit each other. The opponents adjust their intensity based on the rank of their opponent to ensure safety and a good learning experience. The higher the ranks, typically the more intense the match will be. And in tournaments, intensity is 100%. Without actually being in a free fight (with reasonable protective measures like proper gear and a watchful instructor), you cant really know how youll do in a real self-defense situation. Engage in hundreds or thousands of matches, and youve got an idea of how you can really fight. With that being said, here are five of some of the best martial arts styles if you want to learn some good moves for self defense.
Best Martial Arts Styles for Self Defense

What does it mean to be practical for self defense? While this list is non-exhaustive, the ones here are generally rather linear and hard styles, and theyre widespread enough that one can generally find a teacher. I want to be clear that there is no best martial arts style. Its all relative to what your goals are. 1. Kickboxing Kickboxing is one of the most intuitive and practical styles, and its widespread enough to find a good teacher. Learning how to swiftly block punches or kicks, and counter with your own powerful and quick moves, is a timeless and universal skill. Kickboxing is great for freesparring, and is an excellent cardio workout, especially because it often alternates between rest and high blasts of intensity.

The downside is that if you get into a ground-wrestling situation, its not going to help much. I would have also mentioned Karate on this list, except that when Karate students put on gear and do some free-sparring, the result is pretty much kickboxing. 2. Submission Grappling Jujitsu and Brazilian Jujitsu are excellent groundfighting styles. They focus on takedowns, controlling the opponent, and ultimately submitting him or her. Kickboxing is great, but in real life, whether its a high-school brawl or a bar fight, it usually involves headlocks, being slammed against the wall, or being grabbed and pulled in some way. Thats where Jujitsu really shines. You can feel comfortable to know how to avoid being taken down, how to take down your opponent, and how to safely disable him. The key downside is that you actually have to get in close and grab the person before your style becomes effective. A second downside is that its not usually good for multiple opponents. If youre fighting two people, its generally a terrible idea to take one of them down and get on top of him to focus on him, because the other opponent now has free range to assault you. 3. Krav Maga In my martial arts training, there was an element of honor involved. No groin hits, no strikes to the eyes, knee-caps, or throat, no fish-hooking, and no direct hits to the spinal cord. In Krav Maga, the focus is on doing those things. This is because Krav Maga is designed to be a real-world combat system, and there are no rules when youre being violently attacked. The purpose is simple: no mercy, neutralize the threat as quickly as possible. Its used by the Israeli Defense forces, is taught around the world, and emphasizes a combination of blocking and striking, weapon-disarming, and dirty strikes to quickly end the fight. There is low-emphasis on ground-fighting and complex kicks, but students are often taught to deal with such events. 4. Wing Chun Wing Chun is a form of Kung-Fu that, according to legend, was founded by a woman. Its a very linear style, and much like Krav Maga, the emphasis is on moves that are simultaneously defensive and offensive. No energy is wasted, and it combines a very flexible and fluid stance with hard and linear strikes. The goal is to get in close to the opponent, keep your forearms connected with him to feel his movements rather than just see them, and then to swiftly end the fight with a series of effective strikes and low-kicks. A downside is that free-sparring is somewhat rare. However, chi sau is used as a drill, where opponents keep in contact with each other, and flexibly move their arms to try to defend and find weaknesses in their opponents defense. 5. Muay Thai Muay Thai is a practical martial art for a very straightforward reason: practitioners emphasize strikes with the knees and elbows rather than the fists and feet, although they do incorporate both hands, both feet, both elbows, and both knees, into the science of eight limbs. Its not intuitive to those that have not hit hard things, but let me tell you: striking something hard (including a skull), with a bare fist, can potentially break your fist. You can punch someone in the face, and potentially break both their face, and your fist. If theres a second opponent

ready to fight you, then youve got a problem! Punching in real life is a lot different than the movies, where the action hero can just keep punching things without hurting his hand. Thats why, in Muay Thai, striking with the elbows and knees is preferred. Its very hard to truly injure an elbow or knee when they are bent into a striking position. An elbow strike to the face can be more damaging than a punch, and its far less likely that an elbow will be injured from the impact than a fist. So the purpose of Muay Thai is to be able to take down as many opponents as possible without injuring your own body parts. Bonus: Mixed Martial Arts Some of these styles have strengths and weaknesses. For example, kickboxing is great in a stand-up fight, but useless on the ground, and Jujitsu has the opposite issue. Learning how to fight with strikes and with holds and submissions is an excellent set of complementary moves. Learning Mixed Martial Arts is usually a smart choice, because you can get the best aspects of multiple fighting forms. Honorable mentions to this list include Karate (where takedowns and grabs, along with strikes, are useful, but where free-sparring often looks like kickboxing anyway), Jeet Kune Do (which was developed by Bruce Lee and is really a Mixed Martial Art inspired by multiple forms, including fencing, Wing Chun, and Jujitsu), Aikido (which has very fluid and useful elements but often does not do free sparring), and Kali and Keysi (which are much like Krav Maga in that they focus on real-world scenarios, but have fun trying to find a teacher for those)
Conclusion

Martial arts are seriously some of the most natural and useful physical exercises you can learn. But when you pick a style, it all comes down to what your goals are, and your goals should be clearly defined. Do you want pure self defense training, a useful workout, or the whole philosophy and tradition behind it? If youre into the self defense aspect of it, Id strongly recommend learning a martial arts style in a school that lets you practice freely with an opponent. This can include kickboxing, submission grappling, and other forms of open combat.